pkts

Sorry for blowing up this forum with new threads

I just got my PPI back on the CPO 997.2 2S PDK I am considering. Looking for opinions of forum members

Mechanically the car is good except for the PDK having four faults

P1990 Positive engine torque intervention not possible
U0155 CAN timeout Instrument cluster
U0146 CAN Timeout gateway
U0418 CAN fault, brake

I believe these to be a software issue and the PDK just needs to be calibrated. I'm imagining this is not a issue due to it being CPOed

Other than that, the car has road rash on the front bumper, a scratch on the rear bumper, a crack in the Carrera S emblem on deck lid and two sizable scratches on the passenger seat.

I guess I'm wondering how pristine most CPOed cars are usually. I assumed they would have been fixed up but this car seems to being used as a demo or something. It is being offered at a good price but I believe I should be able to ask for a further discount due to its cosmetic condition. What seems fair to you guys? $1000 ?

The strange thing about this car is that it sat for 4 months between manufacture date and purchase ( as a loan vehicle) and now another 3-4 months as a CPO car on the lot. I can understand the latter, but not the former. The car is loaded...then again late 2008-early 09 was a bleak time economically.

To summarize this wall of text.

1. Are the PDK codes a known issue that can easily be addressed under CPO?
2. How much of a discount should the cosmetic damage incur?


Thanks !

USMC_DS1

CPO should cover the PDK tranny if it requires servicing but check with the p-dealer. Recently RL members with PDK's requiring repair have shared that these are being sent back to Germany. It doesn't appear to be dealer serviceable item. If it requires more that just a minor software upload then be prepared for the down time for them to source a new tranny and replace accordingly. If this is a p-dealer purchase than make them service the PDK issue as a condition of sale. You could even put down a deposit and give them the rest once the car is fully functional if they need to replace the tranny... that way if it takes them a month then you're not out the $$$ upfront.

pkts

Good suggestion USMC. They are telling me it's "not a big deal at all"...hmmm never like to hear a sales guy tell me that I'll see what he says when I speak to him.

Eric - Plug Guy

Before you go further on this one, sit down with the service manager and dealer GM with that sales guy in the room. GET IT IN WRITING.

I would not touch it until it was 99% - cosmetics are easily fixed (seat, emblem, etc). But why buy it if you end up leaving it there for three weeks while they play with PDK issues?

Macster

Whatever a car salesman tells you is intended to get you to buy the car as soon as possible and pay as much for the car as possible.

Thus you'll never hear "it is a big deal" even if it is a big deal, unless of course you bring in a car for a trade in with the same error codes, etc. Then it will be "a big deal".

Insist the PDK issues be diagnosed and addressed and their repair (parts/labor) are covered by the CPO warranty as a pre-condition to you buying the car.

After the PDK issues have been adressed -- you want to see some paperwork and in fact have a copy for your records -- but before you sign on the dotted line be sure to subject the car to a longish test ride and then test drive to be sure the PDK and the entire car is ok.

Or walk away.

There's always another car.

Sincerely,

Macster.

USMC_DS1

Ask for the vehicle's complete service records. It should be available if the car was serviced at their dealership. If not then ask for the partial service records since it has been at their dealership for the past 7 months. Should show the type of work they've been doing on the car since they rec'd it. May show if the PDK has been a recurring issue and thus they have not been able to move it off their lot for that reason.

It's great that you're proceeding with caution. Nothing like starting off a new car experience strapped with a problematic car right off the bat. The honeymoon can really sore quickly then. GLW the purchase and I hope it all works out.

pkts

Thanks guys, this forum has got me up to speed on things very fast...really appreciate it. I've asked the dealer for the invoices from the CPO process and will see if they did anything with the PDK. I spoke with the dealer and they said that it didn't throw the codes when they ran the DME report (for revs) that I requested later in the day. Sales guy said that his service guys would love the work so if there was anything wrong with the PDK they would have worked on it already (but I understand sales guys say these kind of things). I'm asking black forest to perhaps redo just that part of the PPI and see if the codes come up again.

Thanks.

X51

It may be ok, it may not be ok. Why take the chance that the codes come up again when it's in your hands, or perhaps even after the CPO ends. With many cars available and coming available all the time, I would continue your search. There are more fish in the sea, as they say. I looked at many before I found mine.

pkts

I think I had a fundamental misunderstanding of what causes the fault code. I thought the car was put through some diagnostic test at the PPI that generated these codes. Now I realize that the PPI just looks in the log to see what codes have been triggered since the last time they were cleared out.

I don't really understand the point of these codes. There doesn't seem to be a date associated with them so you don't know whether they happened yesterday or 3 months ago. And, once they are cleared, you don't know about them and don't know how many times they have happened on the car in its lifetime. Seems like a system open to abuse by dealers/sellers who want the car to appear cleaner than it is. What stops a dealer from just clear out the codes before doing the CPO inspection on a car or a potential buyer doing a PPI? Maybe I'm not understanding something here.

If I start looking at other cars that were more recently CPOed isn't it likely that they will have no fault codes since those would have been cleared recently during the CPO inspection? Inquiring minds want to know

USMC_DS1

All true. In fact, I can clear most/all codes with my $250 Durametric tool. But that's why you want to test drive the car for an extended period of time... ideally for an hour pushing it every way possible - up and down hills, rev thru every gear, streets and highways, low and high speeds, constantly changing driving conditions where possible, long high speed cruises as well. Most codes will trigger again if the car still has an issue. Something to consider though re PDK. These tranny's are very expensive to replace... supposedly $20K vs. $5-6K for a rebuilt manual tranny. So not something to take lightly if the PDK does have issues. Not trying to scare you but it's certainly another data point to consider. If PDK is repaired(more likely replaced) under CPO then all should be good... however, if a problem lingers or crops up after CPO then this could be a significant financial consideration.

pkts

Thanks USMC, your responses to my different threads have been very helpful. I've learned a tremendous amount in the last 5 days...would have been lost without this forum !

The car has 2.5 years left on the warranty so that is comforting. The replacement cost definitely scares me but I grew up with automatics, never learned stick and live in a congested city so PDK is really ideal for me. I'll request a long test drive with the car and then ask the dealer to check for faults with me there.

I received a copy of the invoice from the CPO inspection. Nothing was done to the PDK. Nothing showed up in the car fax before that (except for oil changes and a water pump replacement). The car had zero work done on it other than that kind of stuff. Would it be worth getting the dealer to print up the service records (I assume that is in the system since all the work was done at Porsche dealers)?

I just looked more closely at the carfax. The transmission was checked during two of the oil changes (is that a normal thing to do) and the computer was reprogrammed at the first service after purchase (would that be the PDK software update?)

USMC_DS1

pkts, PDK is the way to go for performance if you need an auto... I lived in LA at one point so it's perfectly understandable for you to have an auto there. The p-dealer should have all the service records if the car was maintained there. Carfax will also indicate where a particular service was done so good way to cross check if the dealer is upfront with service record details. Perhaps ask to discuss the service history with the dealer's service manager especially as it relates to the multiple tranny service touch points. Others with PDK cars may know if this is normal but it looks a bit suspicious. The dealer should know as well if the computer reprogram was tranny or CPU related and why.

If it all checks out then you may have a great car to enjoy for years to come. GL.

XR4Tim

If Carfax is saying that the transmission was checked during the oil changes, I would suspect that means that there was a customer complaint that they addressed. "Checked" would imply that no repairs were made however. This may not be unusual for a PDK, as the PDK behaves differently than other automatic transmissions, and new owners may be used to that.
The computer reprogram could be any software update (DME or PDK)
As for faults being reset, there is a way to see if they have been cleared recently. Have the tech check the readiness monitors. If the readiness monitors are not set, that means that faults have been cleared recently.

Palmbeacher

Not to sound pedantic, but is that four faults including or in addition to being an automatic and not having a clutch pedal?

PHX 911

FIFY